Week of December 1–7, 2022

The UK Home Office has published figures showing a significant increase in work visas in the year ending September 2022, with 248,919 granted – an 82% increase from the pre-pandemic year ending December 2019. However, despite this rise in work visas, the number of unfilled job vacancies in the UK has never been higher, underlining the continued importance of points-based sponsorship for employers. Meanwhile, Home Office actions against non-compliant sponsors have peaked following pandemic disruptions to inspections, before returning to usual levels. The Home Office has also published minor but significant changes to the guidance for organisations with sponsor licences, including exemptions from the Immigration Skills Charge for some sponsors. Sponsors can keep a worker whose start date is delayed by more than 28 days if they report the change and provide reasons, though UK Visas & Immigration may cancel a worker's visa if they are not satisfied with the reasons given.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has revealed that personal information belonging to over 6,000 people in its custody was mistakenly posted on its website for about five hours. The information included names, nationalities, detention centres, and unique identification numbers. It was discovered by Human Rights First, an advocacy group that stated all the detainees whose identities were exposed had expressed fear of persecution if they were denied bids to remain in the United States and were returned home. The senior director for refugee protection at the group, Eleanor Acer, said detainees or their families could be in danger in their home countries. ICE said that it is investigating the incident and taking all corrective actions necessary, calling the release of information an unintentional breach of policy.

A new poll by Rasmussen Reports and NumbersUSA suggests that the majority of Americans who voted in the 2022 midterm elections favour policies that bring legal immigration under control and end illegal immigration. The survey showed that 58% of US midterm voters believed that the government was not doing enough to reduce illegal border crossings and visitor overstays. Meanwhile, 51% of voters believed that President Joe Biden’s administration was doing a poor job of handling the issue of illegal immigration, and only 13% said that the government was doing too much immigration enforcement. The poll found that 60% of voters had rated immigration as one of their top three issues in the midterm elections, while 67% believed it was important to increase physical barriers such as walls and fencing along the US border with Mexico.

The Biden administration is considering plans that would make it more difficult for asylum seekers to enter the United States through the Mexican border, including a regulation to deny asylum to single adult migrants who have not sought protection in other countries. Other deterrents being considered are Border Patrol agents conducting accelerated asylum screenings and increasing the practice of metering, which limits the number of migrants who can approach a port of entry to seek asylum. Since President Joe Biden took office in January 2021, his administration has struggled with record numbers of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border illegally. The plans being considered have drawn concern from immigration advocates and would mark a significant backtrack from Biden's promises to undo his predecessor's hard-line immigration policies and "reassert America's commitment to asylum-seekers and refugees." The policies under consideration are similar to those pushed by former President Donald Trump, which were challenged in court and overturned.

Niger's President, Mohamed Bazoum, has suggested that African and European states should agree on quotas for African immigrants tailored to employment needs. Bazoum has proposed that an agreement based on the number of Africans each European country needs for its labour market could help resolve the problem of illegal migration and human trafficking. He has called for these numbers to be established country by country, and then for the consulates to be entrusted with the responsibility of enforcing them. Niger is both a source country and a transit point for migrants who continue to trek to North Africa and travel across the Mediterranean to Europe's southern coastline. Bazoum believes that agreements between African and European states would help regulate regular immigration and tackle irregular immigration "that fuels the worst trafficking".

Nigerian President Mohamed Bazoum has called for African and European states to agree on quotas for African immigrants tailored to employment needs. Bazoum suggested that an agreement based on the number of Africans each European country needs for its labor market could help resolve the problem of illegal migration and human trafficking. He proposed that the numbers need to be established country by country and consulates should be entrusted with the responsibility of enforcing them. Niger is a source country and transit point for migrants who continue to trek to North Africa and travel across the Mediterranean to Europe's southern coastline. Bazoum believes that agreements between African and European states would help regulate regular immigration and tackle irregular immigration "that fuels the worst trafficking."

Two US senators, Republican Thom Tillis and Democrat Kyrsten Sinema, have reached an agreement to provide a path to citizenship to around two million Dreamers, who are undocumented immigrants who arrived in the US as minors, while boosting border security and streamlining parts of the asylum process. Immigration advocates have been seeking a resolution for Dreamers after the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) programme was ruled unlawful by a court of appeals last year. The reported deal, however, could face opposition from the Republican Party's base. Restrictionist hardliners are likely to call for concessions from the Democrats in return for a deal, although most GOP voters take a softer line on Dreamers. The deal could also lose the support of the Democrats if it leads to the mass deportation of asylum seekers from the interior.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has extended immigration protections for Haitians in the United States. The move will grant work permits and deferment from deportation to those who were in the country as of Nov. 6, 2021. Mayorkas’s decision to both extend and redesignate means that Haitians in the United States who already had TPS protections will now be protected through Aug. 3, 2024, and Haitians who arrived too late to get those protections will be eligible to apply. The Biden administration had previously redesignated Haiti for TPS in 2021, but that announcement came before nearly 15,000 Haitian nationals crossed the Rio Grande in Del Rio, Texas, setting off a wave of repatriations to Haiti. Many pro-Haiti advocates are also calling on the State Department to withdraw support for acting President and Prime Minister Ariel Henry, whom many accuse of colluding with criminal gangs.

Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon has issued a new directive that requires prosecutors in his office to consider the potential effects of charging decisions on the immigration status of suspects. Under the policy, alternatives to criminal convictions will be considered, and diversion programs can help deter deportation and other impacts on the immigration status of suspects. The policy also stipulates that anyone under criminal investigation can contact the DA's office to present information about adverse immigration consequences before a case is filed. Prosecutors are still prohibited from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. Eric Siddall, vice president of the Association for Deputy District Attorneys of Los Angeles County, criticized the new policy, saying that it potentially discriminates against native-born suspects because they aren't at risk of deportation and won't be given the same consideration when charging decisions are made.

Denmark has become the first European country to revoke residence permits for Syrian refugees, leading to outrage from human rights organizations. The country, once known for its liberal stance on human rights, has introduced laws that mean refugees with temporary protection risk losing their status as soon as there is any improvement in their home country, even if conditions remain unpredictable. The move has led to a number of children being sent letters warning that they could be “forcibly sent to Syria” if they did not leave voluntarily, which has been branded “inhumane” and “shocking” by activists. The Danish Refugee Council has criticized the policy and is working to raise awareness of the issue with the UN International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and other organizations.